Editor’s Note: Staff from the Council of Economic Advisers, the Domestic Policy Council, the National Economic Council, the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Science and Technology Policy contributed to this post.

Today, in order to ready the United States for a future in which artificial intelligence (AI) plays a growing role, the White House released a report on Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and the Economy.

Today, President Obama granted clemency to 231 deserving individuals — the most individual acts of clemency granted in a single day by any president in this nation’s history.

Today marks two years from when President Obama announced the normalizing of relations with Cuba. Hear from Julia de la Rosa, a Cuban entrepreneur, on how her life was changed by the President's actions. 

My name is Julia de la Rosa, and I am a Cuban cuentapropista -- or Cuban entrepreneur. Over 20 years ago, my husband and I started our own business in Cuba providing lodging and transportation to visitors in our neighborhood in Havana.

In this week’s address, President Obama discussed the importance of fair competition in the marketplace. The principle of fair competition isn’t a Democratic or a Republican idea – it’s an American idea. Over the past eight years, the Obama Administration has taken many actions to keep the marketplace fair, including: defending a free, open, and accessible internet; cracking down on conflicts of interest by making sure professionals who give retirement advice do so in the consumer’s best interest; and – just this week – standing up for beef, pork, and poultry growers when they’re treated unfairly. The President believes our free-market economy only works when there’s competition and rules are in place to keep it fair, open, and honest. That’s what this is all about – ensuring that everyone has a chance to compete by leveling the playing field and keeping the rules clear and consistent.

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Ed. note: This was originally posted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Today, as part of HUD’s ConnectHome initiative to bring high-speed internet to low-income households with school-aged children in HUD-assisted housing, T-Mobile, the City of New York, and the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) have committed to do their part to close the digital divide in New York.

"I want to say how much Michelle and I appreciate the opportunities to have celebrated so many Hanukkahs with you in the White House ... As many of you know, the name “Hanukkah” comes from the Hebrew word for “dedication.” So we want to thank you again for your dedication to our country, to the historic progress that we’ve made, to the defense of religious freedom in the United States and around the world.

The White House is hosting its final MBK National Summit today, and launching our #IamMBK Digital Day of Action. As we near the end of the Obama administration, we are celebrating the historic progress underway to expand opportunity for all of our kids, and want to make sure that there is no doubt that MBK is here to stay! Tune in to the President's remarks today at 4:45pm ET.

Today, President Obama signed into law the 21st Century Cures Act, bipartisan legislation that will go a long way toward bringing about the medical breakthroughs we need to meet some of the biggest health challenges facing Americans today. No matter what corner of the country you live in, you or someone in your life has been touched by cancer, the opioid epidemic, devastating illnesses or serious mental health issues.

Vice President Joe Biden sent the following message to the White House email list ahead of joining President Obama later today as he signs the Cures Act into law. You can tune in here at 2:00PM ET: 

Last Monday night, forty-four years after the people of Delaware first sent me to the United States Senate, I presided over a Senate vote for one of the last times.

In this week’s address, President Obama discussed Open Enrollment on the Health Insurance Marketplace, which began November 1. The deadline to sign up for coverage beginning on January 1 is this Thursday, December 15, and the final deadline to sign up for 2017 coverage is January 31. Today, thanks to the Affordable Care Act, every American with insurance is covered by the strongest set of consumer protections in history.

You heard it from Shaq himself: on Monday, December 12, the White House will host a competitive gaming event to help people sign up for health care coverage at HealthCare.gov. Tune in to twitch.tv/GetCovered at 4 PM Eastern to join in!

Millions of Americans participate in eSports (that’s Electronic Sports, or competitive video games) to connect with friends, to challenge themselves, to root for their favorite eSports team, and to be part of a rapidly growing community.

Today, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is launching a process to facilitate the availability of over-the-counter hearing aids—an announcement with the potential to positively impact millions of Americans.

Tens of millions of Americans currently suffer from mild to moderate hearing loss, often age-related, but many either don’t realize they’ve been affected or cannot afford basic hearing aids—which currently cost an average of $2,300 apiece.

Watch live at 4:10pm ET to hear President Obama speak on his Administration's approach to counterterrorism: 

President Obama is in Tampa, Florida today to personally thank some of the men and women who have been at the forefront of the global fight against terrorism. While at MacDill Air Force Base, he will also deliver his last major speech dedicated to his national security record in which he will summarize what we've accomplished at home and abroad over the last eight years; how we've approached the threat of terrorism; ;and how he he believes the nation can pursue a successful and sustainable counterterrorism policy in the years to come. 

From the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to the emergence of ISIL, to the importance of diplomacy and global development, President Obama will review exactly what he did as Commander-in-Chief and the lessons that can be drawn from this approach. Make sure you watch at 4:10pm ET. 

In President Obama’s final State of the Union Address, he issued a bold call to action to give every child the opportunity to learn computer science. He did so because computing is becoming increasingly relevant to America’s economy, cybersecurity, and national security. 

He also thinks it’s a lot of fun!

Since then, 2016 has been a year of action in support of computer science, with new announcements made today.

“The changes achieved in the last two decades speak to what people can accomplish when they refuse to accept the world as it is. Today let us once again reach for the world that should be -- one where all people, regardless of country or disability, enjoy equal access, equal opportunity, and the freedom to realize their limitless potential.

In this week's address, President Obama highlighted the 21st Century Cures Act, a bill in Congress that could help us find a cure for Alzheimer's, end cancer as we know it, and help those who are seeking treatment for opioid addiction.This week, the House passed the bill overwhelmingly with bipartisan support -- and the President called on the Senate to do the same when they vote in a few days. Because that's what this is all about: coming to a compromise based on the belief that we should seize every chance we have to find cures as soon as possible.

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The holidays have arrived! It's been a busy here in the White House as we get ready for the holiday season - from First Lady, Michelle Obama receiving the Official White House Christmas tree, to her welcoming military families to the White House to preview the holiday decorations, to President Obama meeting with the 2016 American Nobel Peace Prize winners, to the First Family closing out the week by attending the National Christmas Tree Lighting.

The premise behind the TechHire initiative is simple: Give more people the skills they need to succeed in the tech jobs that employers are struggling to fill. The initiative started with 21 cities, states, and rural areas from St. Louis to Eastern Kentucky, teaming up with 300 companies to train and source a diverse tech workforce from atypical backgrounds.

The economy added a solid 178,000 jobs in November as the longest streak of total job growth on record continued. U.S. businesses have now added 15.6 million jobs since early 2010. The unemployment rate fell to 4.6 percent in November, its lowest level since August 2007, and the broadest measure of underemployment fell for the second month in a row.